SICO launches eKYC services for its online platform, SICO LIVE

By Leandra Monteiro

SICO BSC, a regional asset manager, broker, and investment bank (licensed as a wholesale bank by the CBB), announces that it has launched a simplified digital onboarding process for its SICO LIVE online trading platform, allowing customers in Bahrain to open an account using only two IDs and a selfie through eKYC service by BENEFIT.

This new feature utilises the national eKYC platform, an extensive online database enabling financial institutions to easily authenticate clients’ identities, operated by the BENEFIT Company in collaboration with the Information & eGovernment Authority (iGA), under the supervision of the Central Bank of Bahrain.

SICO is the first investment bank in the Kingdom of Bahrain to obtain the accreditation certificate from the BENEFIT Company to facilitate the process of securely registering its customers to enjoy SICO LIVE’s online trading services. The eKYC identification service will enable SICO LIVE customers to register quicker, more seamlessly, and more securely.

The eKYC service enables financial institutions to electronically authenticate customer identity and retrieve KYC data, in a secure and transparent manner. The process allows onboarding for clients to take minutes rather than the days it would take to accomplish manually by verifying customers in real-time.

Najla Al Shirawi, CEO of SICO, “We are pleased to be the first Investment bank in Bahrain to offer eKYC services through our SICO LIVE app. This upgrade reflects our commitment to continuously customize our offering to improve the overall experience for our clients and create more accessible and inclusive investment solutions in a more ‘contactless’ environment. It is an essential tenet of our strategy to enhance our services to meet our clients’ ever-evolving needs for a smoother and easier user experience and capitalize on the advances in fintech to create a more digital-forward environment in line with the government’s approach.”

Abdulwahed AlJanahi, CEO of the BENEFIT Company said, “This is a defining moment in SICO’s digital transformation journey, and we are honored to be a part of it by bridging the gap between SICO and its consumers through the eKYC’s seamless and secure mechanism. SICO is heavily invested in fintech and is a digitally-led organization, and implementing this service will further enhance their efforts and elevate their customer experience across many levels. We applaud SICO’s initiative to implement such technological advancements and are pleased to be part of this shift. Through these partnerships, we will accelerate Bahrain’s digital transformation journey across key sectors that the eKYC platform will greatly contribute to.”

“SICO LIVE digital enhancements reflect our ongoing digital mission in automating all our customers’ services and enabling their day-to-day markets tracking, trading, cash settlement transfers, and long-term experiences through a single app. The eKYC feature is a testament to our ability to keep pace with the most modern digital solutions that best facilitate the online experience for our customers,” added Mohammed Ibrahim, Head of Information Technology at SICO.